Geophysical Hydrodynamics of Currents, Waves, and Ice in the Atlantic Arctic

This book presents a comprehensive summary of our research conducted across an extensive area surrounding Spitsbergen, encompassing the Barents, Greenland, and Norwegian Seas, as well as the fjords of Spitsbergen. It consolidates findings previously published in scientific journals and conference proceedings, while also introducing new data from recent investigations of geophysical flows and wave dynamics in the region. The majority of the results are derived from field observations, which are complemented by numerical modeling of oceanic currents and wave processes.

The fieldwork incorporates a diverse range of measurement techniques, including moored instrument arrays in the Nordic and Arctic seas, CTD, LADCP and ADV casts obtained from both vessels and ice platforms, wave buoys, and satellite-tracked beacons deployed on drifting ice floes and icebergs. Particular attention is devoted to the study of internal waves occurring beneath sea ice as well as in ice-free oceanic environments.

The drift, deformation, and disintegration of sea ice and icebergs in the study area have been examined using satellite observations of ice motion in combination with data from beacon transmissions. Water pressure measurements below fast ice enabled the detection of a tsunami wave generated by a glacier motion within a fjord. Additional investigations focused on flexural–gravity waves propagating through sea ice and on the surface signatures of various wave types within the ocean, corroborated by subsurface observations of phenomena such as wind waves originating from open water, seiches, and internal waves.

Finally, we examined freshwater discharge from tidewater glaciers entering the marine environment of Spitsbergen fjords, as well as the formation of sea ice from tidal jets of seawater flowing beneath ice cover in narrow straits.